events

My 2018 diary is already filling up with various talks, and there are two very special events I would like to share with you. Firstly, I am thrilled to announce that I have been invited to take part in Hull University’s 3 day English Literature Festival organised by The National Collaborative Outreach Programme. The Festival starts on the 6th February 2018 and is aimed at raising aspirations of students aged 13-18 across the Humber region by increasing their knowledge of careers in writing, publishing, illustrating, marketing, public speaking and much more. A selection of panels and workshops are planned and full details will be available shortly on the website: www.force-higher.co.uk and on the Twitter feed @Force_HE #ELFHumber2018.

Secondly, Bradford UK Indie Literature Festival is returning for a third year on the 28th July, and is once again being held in the fabulous Kala Sangam in the centre of the city. This is a free event, with 40 authors in attendance, so there is sure to be a book to suit all tastes. Details on where to obtain a ticket are on the UKindieLitFest website.

As it is the holiday season, I have reduced the price of the Kindle version of my romantic suspense novel, The House on the Shore, until 3rd January 2018. You can download a copy from Amazon for only 99p/99c instead of the usual price of £2.99/$2.99.

The audiobook versions of The House on the Shore and Ring of Lies are garnering good reviews. If you have never listened to an audiobook and would like to do so, I have a six vouchers available for a free download from Audible.co.uk, and Audible.com on a first come, first served basis. If you would like one, just send me an email via the contact form on my website stating which recording you would prefer.

2017 is nearly over, so I would like to thank everyone who has attended an event or purchased a book, a very Happy Christmas and a healthy and prosperous New Year. I hope to see you again in 2018.

With winter is just around the corner, there is no better time for me to knuckle down and work on a manuscript. But, before I do, there was just time to squeeze in a holiday before I dig out the winter woollies from the bottom of the wardrobe and hibernate until spring.

As many of you will know, I lived on a croft in rural Aberdeenshire for many years and have long considered Scotland my second home. So, it probably comes as no surprise that my destination of choice was Scotland and in particular, Dumfries and Galloway. I love the Highlands, the rugged beauty of the mountains, but the Scottish border country also has a special place in my heart because it is the home of Scotland’s National Book Town.

Wigtown is home to at least seven bookshops and is a haven for book lovers with over a quarter of a million books to choose from. Each year holds it holds a book festival. With 200 hundred events and workshops for adults and children. The festival takes place over ten days, with such speakers as Ian Rankin, Professor Iain Sinclair, Mairi Hedderwick, Denise Mina, and Gavin Esler, I decided to take some time out of our holiday to attend a few of the events.

I have long held the desire to write crime. So, when I read in the Festival Brochure that Denise Mina, winner of the McIlvanney Prize 2017 for Scottish crime book of the year, I knew that was one event I could not miss. Ms Mina is a Scottish novelist and playwright, and her latest book, The Long Drop is the true crime account of Peter Manuel, a serial killer who operated in Glasgow in the 1950s.

Now, I have a confession to make, although I have seen Ms Mina’s books in the local bookshop, I had never read one until this week. More than just a crime story, The Last Breath, kept me up all night wondering what would happen next. As soon as I finish this post, I shall be scouring Amazon for more of her novels.

Not only am I determined to finish the romantic suspense novel I’m working on, but also to try my hand at writing a crime novel. Watch this space!

to be held at the
Kala Sangam Arts Centre,
1 Forster Court,
Bradford, BD1 4YT
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on Saturday 26th August, 2017
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Entry is FREE, but you will require a ticket available from Eventbrite.
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I look forward to seeing you all there!

I can’t believe it’s almost the end of February, and I am only just updating this page. It’s not that I had forgotten or been disorganised, my only excuse is that I’ve been busy! My diary is full of speaking and multi-author book signing events, all of which are listed on the Events page of this website.

I’m delighted to report that the audiobook versions of my novels have received some lovely reviews on Audible.com So, much so, that I decided to include Jim’s review of The House on the Shore here. What makes his review all the more satisfying is that he states he doesn’t normally read or listen to romance!

“A compelling mystery and great love story.”

The way I would start this sarcastically is: I didn’t hate it. In truth, I really liked it!

I usually don’t read or listen to romance. This audio book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review, though, so I thought I’d give the genre a chance. I’m glad I did. The writing is excellent; descriptive without being flowery, suspenseful with out being confusing, and romantic without being lewd. A love story written in and around a mystery story, both taking turns that could go in one of two or even three directions. The characters were described so well that, by the end of the book, I was seeing them have conversations, not just listening. Though I don’t often delve into this genre, I’ll be reading or listening to more from Victoria Howard, mostly because the suspense and mystery is so well done.

The performance by Ruth Urquhart was great. Her being able to shift between accents, even between varying Scottish accents, was superb, and her American accents were some of the best I’ve heard from a non-American. The pace of her read was consistent and clean, pronunciation excellent, and I was able to drop into that world without a thought as she brought the words to life.All in all, this is a great story, a good performance, and now I actually want to visit a small “House on the Shore.”

Did you know that if you’ve purchased a copy of either the print or ebook versions from Amazon you can download a copy of the audiobook from Audible for a fraction of the price? So why not head over to Audible treat yourself to a copy of The House on the Shore or Ring of Lies?

Work on my next romantic suspense novel progresses, now that I have completed the research following a visit to Scotland in autumn last year. As with The House on the Shore, this book is also set in the Highlands, and features Imogen Stark, a landscape photographer. I’m hoping the manuscript will be complete by August or September and will be published sometime in 2018.

Although it is some time away, I am pleased to announce that I am taking part in a multi-author signing in event at the Red Rose Steam Society Ltd, Astley Green, Manchester, on Saturday 13th August 2015.

Authors of all genres will be in attendance. So, if you are an avid reader, why not make a note in your diary and come along? I shall be posting more details, including how to obtain tickets, nearer the time.

On Saturday the 5th September, I had the pleasure of joining over ninety fellow romance authors and members of the Romantic Novelists’ Association at an Afternoon Tea held in the fifteenth century York Guildhall.

Organised and hosted by the Yorkshire Terrier Chapter of the RNA, this was the first time such an event had been held outside of London.With a glass of Prosecco in hand it was time to circulate and chat with friends old and new, assisted by our name badges, before taking a seat at one of the tables.

Grace was said by Kelvin Woolmer, husband of RNA Chapter Liaison, Jean Fullerton. Then tea was served on delicate vintage china. The caterers did themselves proud, supplying copious amounts of tea, sandwiches, savouries, and cakes.

Multi-published author, Milly Johnson entertained us with an hysterical talk on the habits of ‘The Northern Bird,’ and how she differs from her southern sister. Milly concluded with her own variation of the well-known Robert Burns poem, with her ‘Address to the Scone,’ after which we appropriately tucked into scones with clotted cream and homemade strawberry jam. Yum!

Over the weekend of 11-13 July, two hundred and fifty novelists gathered in glorious sunshine for the annual Romantic Novelists’ Association conference at Harper Adams University. Set in the heart of the Shropshire, Harper Adams is an agricultural college complete with cows, pigs and sheep, and yes, all the associated farmyard aromas.

Harper Adams University

As usual, the conference content was superb, with a mixture of workshops and talks on traditional and self-publishing, as well as technique. My main problem was choosing what to attend. As workshops run concurrently, I rushed from one to next, only pausing for a quick cup of tea and chat with a friend.

Sue Moorcroft leading one of the panels.

The highlight of the weekend was the gala dinner on the Saturday evening, during which Janice Preston was presented with the Elizabeth Goudge Prize for the best short story written by a conference attendee.

Rosemary Gemmell at the Gala Dinner

The following weekend, I took part in the Penistone Literary Festival, along with my friend and fellow novelist, Milly Johnson. Arriving early, I had the opportunity to listen to Michael Fowler talk about his crime novels and life as a former police officer.

Michael Fowler

Milly Johnson and me comparing notes at Penistone Literary Festival

As for the rest of the month – I’m pleased to say that the audio book version of The House on the Shore is underway and will be available to download from Audible, Amazon and iTunes later this year!

I’m also involved in an interesting project with fellow American author, Brenda Hill, but more of that later.

In the meantime, it’s back to working on the next book. Are you curious what it’s all about…? Well here’s a small clue…

A full programme of events has now been released for the inaugural Penistone Literary Festival. Headlined by one of the best poets of his generation, Simon Armitage, and best selling author, Milly Johnson, supported by Andrew Macmillan, crime writer M J Fowler, and other local poets and authors, it promises to be a fun-filled two-days for young and old alike.

There are events for children, Penny the Sheep Children’s exhibition, a vintage tea room, a Bookshop and the chance to purchase a Penny the Sheep Mug!

2014 kicked off with a large portion of southern England underwater. While South Yorkshire has been battered intermittently by gale force winds, I’ve been beavering away in my office, and left wondering what happened to January.

My writing time has been divided between working on my current manuscript, speaking engagements, and dipping my toes into the mysterious world of forensic science.

I’ve long harboured the desire to write a crime novel, and when the opportunity to learn something about forensic science with FutureLearn arose, I grabbed it with both hands. FutureLearn is an online study program set up with the cooperation of educators from top UK and international universities. The courses it offers are free and cover a wide range of topics, and are designed to appeal to a broad range of learners. There’s even one on writing fiction. (Advertisement over!)

While I have a good grasp of human biology, its diseases and their aetiology, (I was a business coordinator in the NHS, after all), chemistry and physics leave me cold. That said I am fascinated by the world of forensic science and insist on watching every factual TV programme on the subject.

Over the past five weeks, I have learned about fingermarks, footmarks, (and just so there is no confusion, fingerprints and footprints are what we possess and ‘marks’ are what we leave behind on a surface). The course has also covered DNA, blood spatter patterns, toolmarks, and drugs.

As Edmund Locard, who not only formulated the basic principle of forensic science, and was known as the ‘Sherlock Holmes of France’ once said:

‘Wherever he steps, whatever he touches, whatever he leaves, even unconsciously, will serve as a silent witness against him.’

Very useful for reminding the family that you will find out who removed the last slice of bread from the breadbin and who failed to place the butter back on the shelf in the fridge!

My other half, Stephen, bless him, is looking more and more worried by the day, by my choice of bedtime reading – The Crime Writer’s handbook, 65 Ways to kill your victim…in print, and with the subject matter of my next course – Forensic Science and Crime!

So while Stephen is asking about that mysterious substance I added to the casserole (it was pepper, honestly!) the time has come for me to get my head down and do more writing.

You haven’t heard from me lately, and it’s for some very good reasons. No, the dog (Rosie) did NOT eat my homework. I’ve been extremely busy promoting my novels, and – yes, it’s true! – negotiating a contract for an audiobook version of Ring of Lies! I’m delighted to announce that it will be available before the year is out. I’m also releasing a special boxed set of Ring of Lies and The House on the Shore later this month, just in time for holiday gift-giving. Both items will delight the dedicated romantic suspense reader!

At the end of September, I travelled to Scotland for a writer’s meeting in romantic Gretna Green. It was wonderful to meet some of my fellow authors and members of the Romantic Novelists’ Association. Unfortunately, for the present, I’m not at liberty to divulge what was discussed during this fascinating afternoon. Suffice to say, if things pan out, next year could be extremely exciting for readers and authors of romantic fiction! Unfortunately, I couldn’t stay for the tour of the World-famous Blacksmiths shop, as I had to return to Barnsley for another meeting later that evening.

Earlier this week, I had the pleasure of reading the pre-release copy of The Seacrest by best selling author, Aaron Paul Lazar. If you’ve never read any of Aaron’s books then you are in for a treat. The Seacrest is a wonderful bittersweet love story that will have you reaching for the box of tissues by the end of chapter three! I could not put the book down, so please visit Aaron’s website for the opportunity to read the first chapter.

On Thursday 10th October, I’m hoping (fingers crossed) to inspire the students of Thomas Rotherham College, as part of their Literacy Week Events. I’ll be speaking about ‘how to take your idea from brainstorm to book,’ so I’m hard at work refining my PowerPoint presentation.

So stay tuned, my dears. I’ll make sure you know when everything is available.